The last few weeks have seen a flurry of publications providing a slightly clearer picture of the employment and immigration consequences of a Brexit deal or no-deal. In addition to the final text of the draft Withdrawal Agreement setting out the arrangements for the UK’s withdrawal from the EU on 29 March 2019 and the draft Political Declaration on the future relationship between the EU and the UK, the European Commission has published a Q&A on citizens’ rights under the Withdrawal Agreement and a proposed Regulation on visa-free travel while the UK Government has published a policy paper on citizens’ rights in a no-deal scenario and its much-delayed Immigration White Paper. So where does all this leave employers? Continue reading →

On Monday 17 December 2018, the Fair Work Amendment (Casual Loading Offset) Regulations 2018 (Cth) (Amending Regulation) was registered and took effect from 18 December 2018. The Amending Regulation amends the Fair Work Regulations 2009 (Cth). The Amending Regulation is intended to apply where an employee has mistakenly been classified as a casual employee and is claiming NES entitlements, even though they have received a casual loading in lieu of those entitlements. The purpose is to ensure double-dipping does not occur. Continue reading →

The Government has today published its response to the Women and Equalities Select Committee report published in July of this year (see our blog post here) on sexual harassment at work. It has noted the lack of data and research on this issue, as highlighted by the Committee, and therefore, for the most part, its response is to consult and collect more data in order to identify the most effective interventions. However, it has agreed with the Committee that a new statutory Code of Practice should be introduced, to be developed by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

The Government has today published its “vision for the future of the UK labour market”, the Good Work Plan, which builds on its earlier response to the Taylor Review (see our summary here) on the impact of digital platforms on modern working practices and the rights of workers.

This publication sets out what the Government describes as “ambitious” proposals for employment law reform, together with feedback from the four recent consultations on employment status, transparency, agency workers and enforcement.

The Government states that it has accepted the vast majority of the recommendations from the Taylor Review and proposes legislative changes “to ensure that workers can access fair and decent work, that both employers and workers have the clarity they need to understand their employment relationships, and that the enforcement system is fair and fit for purpose”.

On 30 November 2018, legislation was gazetted which proposes various amendments to the Sex Discrimination Ordinance, Disability Discrimination Ordinance, Family Status Discrimination Ordinance and the Race Discrimination Ordinance. The proposed amendments reflect eight of the recommendations from the Equal Opportunities Commission Report on the Discrimination Law Review. Key changes include extending protections against discrimination on the ground of breastfeeding and extending protections against disability and racial harassment by customers.

The Bill inserts a new entitlement in the National Employment Standards for all national system employees to five days of unpaid family and domestic violence leave within a 12 month period. The entitlement commenced common Wednesday 12 December 2018 (Commencement Date). The Bill does not preclude employers applying their own additional domestic and family violence policies and practices (e.g. offering paid leave). Continue reading →

The Modern Slavery Bill 2018 (Cth) (Bill) was passed into law on 29 November 2018. It is expected to commence in January 2019.

The Bill creates an ongoing obligation for ‘Reporting Entities’ to file a modern slavery statement (Statement) – being a report on the steps the entity has taken to assess and address risks of modern slavery in its operations and its supply chains during a reporting period. To discover what you need to know and how to prepare for the commencement of this Bill, click here.

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